1. Field of the Invention
This invention is generally directed to traction systems for automotive vehicles and more specifically to systems for utilizing the exhaust gases from an automotive vehicle engine and/or air heated by passing in heat exchange relationship with the automotive exhaust system to melt ice or snow immediately in front of the vehicle drive wheels so that the drive wheels are able to maintain better traction with a traveled surface. The traction increasing systems of the present invention are designed to provide a positive flow of heated gas or air to the area adjacent the front of the drive wheels regardless of the operating speed of the vehicle engine. In addition, the systems of the present invention not only utilize the exhaust gases directly but may also be utilized to selectively heat air which passes in heat exchange relationship with the vehicle engine, the catalytic converter or the pipes of the vehicle exhaust system. In each case, a blower unit is provided to supply a positive flow of heated air to the area adjacent the drive wheels so that ice or snow which is built up in front of the drive wheels will be melted thereby enabling the drive wheels to obtain better traction with the traveled surface. The systems of the invention are further designed to be quickly installed to existing automotive exhaust systems without interfering with the operation of the exhaust systems and without adversely effecting the operation of the vehicle engine. Further, in at least one of the embodiments of the present invention, air is passed in heat exchange relationship with the catalytic converter associated with the vehicle exhaust system and thereby enables the catalytic converter to be substantially cooled thereby prolonging the effective life of the converter and at the same time preventing undesirable heat buildup under the vehicle passenger compartment.
2. History of the Related Art
Many motorists have experienced the frustrations which are encountered when operating their motor vehicles during inclement weather conditions. All to often, snow and ice accumulate on driveways, parking lots and roadways making vehicle operation not only difficult but hazardous. When such adverse conditions are anticipated, many motorists prepare their vehicles for safer operation by mounting snow tires and/or chains. However, even these preparations are not always effective.
In addition to the foregoing, many of today's automotive vehicles are equipped with what are termed "all weather tires" which are specifically designed to enable vehicle operation under both good and bad weather conditions. Such all weather tires do away with the additional expense of separate tires and/or chains and also free motorists from having to install separate tires or chains in anticipation of adverse weather. Again, however, even the best all weather tires are not always effective and this is true under conditions of minor snow accumulations.
In those instances where the drive wheels of a vehicle lose momentum with respect to a snow or ice covered traveled surface, the tires are generally ineffective to overcome the buildup of an ice or snow block which accumulates in front of the drive wheels during such slippage. The loss of vehicle momentum results in the weight of the vehicle being ineffective to overcome even a small buildup of ice or snow in front of the drive wheels. Under these conditions, the wheels will simply spin relative to the traveled surface and as they continue this motion will add to the buildup of icy material in the area forward of the tires as snow and ice is melted and refrozen.
The foregoing problems associated with the loss of momentum in operating motor vehicles is not peculiar to smaller vehicles such as automobiles. Even large trucks which are generally designed to operate under adverse weather conditions will encounter areas in which the loss of vehicle momentum results in the drive wheels of the trucks losing traction and being inefficient in establishing forward or rearward motion of the vehicle relative to a snow or ice covered surface. This requires the operator of the vehicle to dismount the vehicle and clear the ice and snow from in front of the drive wheels or perhaps provide abrasives in front of the drive wheels in order to permit the vehicle to again reestablish some type of forward or reverse momentum which will enable the drive wheels to have effective drive traction relative to the slippery traveled surface.
In addition to the foregoing, even in those instances where vehicle operators are able to overcome a free wheeling condition relative to a slippery surface such as by rocking a vehicle back and forth relative to the surface, the wear and tear on the engine and clutch components of the vehicle becomes significant and possible damage may be caused to the vehicle drive train, clutch or the tires themselves. Further, even on minor inclines where it would appear that vehicle momentum may be achieved such as by having individuals aid in pushing a vehicle relative to the surface, the safety hazards associated with such maneuvers are often significant. When the drive wheels of an automotive vehicle are free wheeling relative to a slippery surface, the entire vehicle may be shifted easily from side to side as the wheels spin through snow or along an icy surface. If the vehicle accidentally begins to spin or move in what is termed a fish-tailing type manner, any persons attempting to push the vehicle are subjected to being hit by the vehicle as it swings relative to its elongated axis. An additional hazard is encountered where the vehicle drive wheels are free wheeling and often kick up small chunks of ice and gravel which are thrown to the rear of the vehicle and which may hit bystanders causing severe injury.
In view of the foregoing, there have been efforts made to provide some type of assistance for enabling initial traction to be established between vehicle drive wheels and a snow or ice covered surface. In many of these developments, use has been made of the exhaust gases developed by the engine of the automotive vehicle in an attempt to direct such gases to melt ice or snow in the area of the vehicle drive wheels.
In U.S. Pat. No. 2,515,341 to Giguere, a deicing attachment for motor vehicles is disclosed which incorporates a hand-directed nozzle element which is connected by a tube to the tailpipe of the automotive exhaust system. The flexible tube or conduit connecting the nozzle to the exhaust system allows the nozzle to be oriented so as to direct exhaust gases in the area adjacent a vehicle tire. Unfortunately, with this type of system, the operator of the vehicle must dismount the vehicle and manually maneuver the deicing nozzle so as to direct the gases relative to the vehicle tires. This, of course, is not an effective means for operating the vehicle as the operator must mount and dismount the vehicle every time any type of wheel slippage is encountered. This means that the momentum of the vehicle will never be established so long as there is any wheel slippage relative to an ice or snow covered surface. Further, with this type of structure, the operator of the vehicle must be in the area of the exhaust fumes which is not safe nor healthy.
Improvements on the foregoing system have been suggested over the years. In U.S. Pat. No. 3,232,287 to Gillingham et al., an automobile defreezing unit is disclosed wherein a control valve is mounted rearwardly of the exhaust manifold coming from the engine and in which exhaust gases may be regulated towards the rear wheels of the vehicle upon the vehicle operator operating one or two valves which are controlled by cables extending to the dashboard of the vehicle. However, as with the case with the structure in the patent to Giguere, the Gillingham et al. system is designed to be manually operated with the nozzle being directed to components such as the brake drums or wheels through an elongated flexible conduit. Therefore, with this type of system, the aforementioned problems of loss of vehicle momentum and of operator contact directly with the exhaust gases remain a significant problem which make the system ineffective for actual use.
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,203,423 to Ricci, a vehicle safety system is disclosed wherein a plurality of flexible hose elements extend from a special gas distributor which is mounted in the exhaust line between the muffler and the tailpipe of an automotive vehicle. The exhaust distributor is controlled by a valve operated by the vehicle operator from the interior of the vehicle. This type of system does away with the necessity for the operator having to mount and dismount the vehicle and thereby enables the momentum of the vehicle to be continually established up slight grades when exhaust gases are being directed toward the vehicle drive wheels Unfortunately, this type of system relies totally on the flow of exhaust gases from the engine and therefore at low engine RPM's, the amount of gas which is available to actually be directed through four conduits is somewhat insignificant and therefore often not effective. In establishing vehicle momentum on slippery surfaces, the engine RPM's must be maintained as close to a minimum as possible so as not to overdrive the wheels and cause spinning of the wheels relative to the slippery surface. However, under such engine operation conditions, only a minimum flow of exhaust gases is achievable and therefore only a minimum amount of hot air or gas is available to be utilized to melt ice or snow in the area of the vehicles. A similar system is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,324,307 to Schittino et al. In this system, the conduits directed to the vehicle drive wheels are continuously exposed to vehicle exhaust gases. This situation cannot be tolerated as there are many instances in which it would not be desired to direct exhaust gases relative to the vehicle drive wheels. Further, it is contemplated that the use of such exhaust gases in a continuously inline system would present a safety hazard which would not be acceptable to the automotive industry.
In an effort to increase the traction developed between vehicle wheels and a slippery road surface, other systems have been proposed for providing abrasives to the area adjacent of the vehicle wheels. Further, in some of these systems, air or gases are utilized from the vehicle exhaust system to propel the abrasives relative to the drive wheels.
In U.S. Pat. No. 3,289,668 to Drucker, a snow and ice melting traction device for vehicles is disclosed having a sand distributor which is mounted adjacent to a discharge nozzle that is supplied with gases from the vehicle exhaust system. However, this type of system suffers from the same disadvantages as the system discussed above with respect to the patent to Ricci. Specifically, the amount of gas flow which is achievable is dependent upon the amount of exhaust gases being discharged from the engine. Therefore, when the engine is at low RPM as is necessary when establishing traction, a minor amount of exhaust gases are developed and therefore only a minor amount of hot gas is available at the area of the drive wheels.
In U.S. Pat. No. 2,999,711 to Sturmer, an anti-skid sanding device is disclosed wherein a separate blower unit is utilized to discharge sand forwardly or on top of the vehicle drive wheels in order to provide traction elements which can be utilized by the drive wheels when traveling over ice or snow. There is no attempt with such systems, however, to provide any apparatus for melting any ice or snow relative to the drive wheels. Further, the use of such abrasives requires a supply of abrasives to be maintained in the vehicle which is not always possible especially if the system has been utilized frequently over a short period of time. A similar type of system is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,316,625 to Goon et al. In this system, a separate blower is also utilized to discharge sand forwardly of the drive wheels of the vehicle. Again, this requires that a supply of abrasive materials be carried in the vehicle at all times or readily available to load in the vehicle at all times.
A further example of vehicle traction device for automotive vehicles is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,063,606 to Makinson. In this patent, an anti-hydroplaning device is disclosed wherein a pump supplies high pressure air forwardly of the vehicle steering wheels so as to prevent hydroplaning of the wheels relative to a wet traveled surface.